Tuesday, February 1, 2011

To Kill a Mockingbird- Character analysis

This is the character analysis of the main characters in the story, which describes them.
Dill:
He is Scout and Jem's best friend, visiting them in summer. Dill is dreamy, enigmatic and insecure and he felt unwanted until the Finch children welcomed him under their wing.


Scout:
She is a tomboy at heart, and works hard not to "act like a girl" by wearing overalls instead of dresses and beating up other children who antagonize her.


Jem:
He is Scout's brother, acting as her playmate and protector. He is a inquisitive young boy and is bold.


Atticus:
He is Jem and Scout's father, and a lawyer. The epitome of moral character, Atticus teaches his children and his community how to stand up for one's beliefs in the face of prejudice and ignorance by defending a black man.


Boo Radley: 
Arthur "Boo" Radley is Maycomb's town recluse. According to town gossip, Boo stabbed his father in the leg when he was a boy and has since been confined to his house. The children imagine Boo as a ghoulish figure who eats cats and stalks about the neighborhood under the cover of night. In fact, Boo stands as a figure of innocence who befriends and protects the children in his own way.


Calpurnia: 
The Finch's black housekeeper, Calpurnia acts as a mother figure and disciplinarian in the Finch household.  Atticus trusts Calpurnia, relies on her for support raising his children, and considers her part of the family.  Calpurnia also gives the children insight into her world when she takes them to her church.


Tom Robinson: 
The most important client of Atticus' career, Tom Robinson, a young, black man, is a church going, father of four accused of rape by Mayella Ewell. 


Bob Ewell: 
Bob Ewell, a white man, and his family live behind Maycomb's dump.  Desperately poor, Ewell uses his welfare money to buy alcohol while his children go hungry.His nineteen year old daughter, Mayella, accuses Tom Robinson of rape and battery.


Aunt Alexandra:
Atticus' sister, Aunt Alexandra is a proper Southern woman who maintains a strict code about with whom she and her family should associate. She criticizes Atticus for letting Scout run wild and when she moves into their home during Tom Robinson's trial, Alexandra urges Scout to wear dresses and become a proper lady.


Miss Maudie Atkinson: 
Miss Maudie is the counterpoint to Aunt Alexandra. A neighbor to the Finch family, Maudie offers Scout a female role model opposite from Alexandra.  Maudie respects the children and admires Atticus. Unlike the other women in the town, Maudie minds her own business and behaves without pretension or hypocrisy.


Walter Cunningham: 
Honest and hard working, Walter Cunningham and his son are respectable community members who represent the potential in everyone to understand right from wrong despite ignorance and prejudice.

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